Step 1: Get Organized

To prepare your return correctly, follow the steps below to gather the information and documentation you need to prepare your return. This is the longest step, but getting everything organized before you start will make preparing your return much faster.

  1. Confirm your federal tax residency status

  2. Determine if you need to file a return

  3. Gather your income documents

  4. Confirm your return is in scope

Confirm your federal tax residency for 2021

The easiest way to do this is to use our free Am I A Nonresident Alien? tool.

  • To use this tool you will need your visa and U.S. entry and exit dates. You can download your travel history based on your passport here: https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/home. You should double check this data as it may not be complete, but it will give you a good start.

    • You’ll need your passport, visa, and entry/exit info for your return, too.

If you are a resident alien, you can request a membership and use our software to prepare your return. However, we do not provide any guides or other assistance to help you prepare your return. If you would like more assistance, here are two organizations that provide free tax preparation for U.S. tax residents:

If you are a nonresident alien, continue to the next step.

Determine if you need to file a U.S. income tax return

Did you have any income during 2021 that came from a U.S. source? This could be a scholarship or fellowship from your school, wages earned working for an employer while you are in the U.S., or income from other sources.

  • If no, then you do not need to file a tax return for 2021. Now check the output from your Am I A Nonresident Alien tool. Do you have any days listed as exempt during 2021? If yes, the only thing you need to do is file a form 8843. You do not need a social security number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) to file this form.

  • If you do have U.S. income, then you will need to file a tax return for 2021. Continue to the next step.

Gather your income documents

OK - we won’t lie - this step is a doozy. However it’s one of the most important, as you will need to have all of your income documents gathered before you can correctly prepare and file your tax returns. Please be aware that some of these documents are not always available electronically, so you may have to request a paper copy in the mail, which can take a couple of weeks to receive. Also, if you submit your tax return without all of your income documents, you can’t just send in a new copy - you will have to submit an amended return that corrects the error, and amended returns are out of scope for our clinic so we won’t be able to assist you.

  • Here is a list of the most common income documents, and the types of income they represent. These documents are all sent to you by the organization / person who paid you - you will never be creating one of these documents yourself. You will only get one of these types of documents if you have that type of income. If you think you should get one of these and haven’t received it, contact the organization that paid you. There are other forms, so if you receive a different document please check our special circumstances guides or contact us at taxassistance@nrvtap.com

    • W-2: This form reports wages earned while working as an employee.

    • 1042-S: This form reports income for a nonresident alien that has special tax treatment. We commonly see 1042-S forms for treaty exempt wage income and scholarships / fellowships, but it is possible to receive this form for other types of income. We have a section about 1042-S forms in our FAQ.

    • 1099-INT: The form reports interest you earned, usually from a checking or savings account. Bonuses for opening an account are usually considered interest and reported on this form.

    • 1099-B: This form reports the sales of stocks, mutual funds, commodities, and other securities, along with any tax that has been withheld.

    • 1099-DIV: This form reports dividends received from U.S. stocks and mutual funds, along with any tax that has been withheld.

    • 1099-NEC: This form reports non-employee compensation, and is usually received from work as an independent contractor. Please note that income of this type is out of scope for our clinic, so we cannot provide assistance with how to properly report this income.

    • 1099-MISC: This form reports other miscellaneous income, including prizes and awards. Please note that income of this type is out of scope for our clinic, so we cannot provide assistance with how to properly report this income.

  • If you are a student at the University of Minnesota, you also need to get a copy of your one-stop student account information for calendar year 2021.

    • Here’s a you tutorial about how to get it: One-Stop Student Account Info

    • Why do you need this, you ask? Two reasons:

      • The University of Minnesota does not provide an income document for all scholarships and fellowships. You should have received an award letter that told you about the scholarship or fellowship,. If you didn’t receive an income document that matches your letter, you can contact UofM payroll to ask if you will be receiving a 1042-S for your scholarship / fellowship by emailing them at: ohr@umn.edu. Unless the scholarship or fellowship is directly applied to your tuition or fees it is taxable (though you may be able to claim a treaty benefit and not have to pay any tax). The best way we’ve found to know what you received and how the funds were used is to look at your University account information.

      • You will also need this information to determine if you are eligible for the Minnesota property tax refund, and prepare that return if you are eligible.

  • If you rented an apartment in Minnesota during 2021 you should receive a Certificate of Rent Paid (CRP) by January 31, 2022. Most people will only have one of these. However, if you have rented more than one property in 2021, you will have one for each place you’ve lived. You will not receive a CRP if you lived in a co-op, university housing, or other situation where the owner(s) of your apartment building did not pay any property taxes.

  • If you filed a tax return last year, you will need a copy of that return (both federal and state, if you filed a state return). This is used to determine any extra tax you paid, any refunds you received, and some of the return information is used as a security check when you e-file your 2021 return.

    • If you prepared your return with us last year, we instructed you to keep a download pdf of your returns, so hopefully you can find it. You also may be able to import the info from your last year’s return when you log back into TaxSlayer.

    • If you can’t find your federal return, you can create an IRS online account and get a copy of your tax transcript. IRS Account

    • If you can’t find your Minnesota return, you can request a copy here: MN Prior Return Request

    • If you can’t find either set of returns, you may be able to look up on your banking history to determine any additional tax you paid / refunds you received. This won’t let you e-file your return this year, but it will let you prepare a correct return which you can then paper file.

There are 2 forms that you might receive that nonresident aliens do NOT need for their tax returns.

  • The first is a 1098-T. This is used by residents to claim education credits. Unfortunately nonresident aliens aren’t eligible for these credits, and so you won’t use this form to prepare your taxes.

  • The second is a 1095-B or 1095-C. These report your health care insurance information. Nonresident aliens don’t need to report this data, so you don’t need this form.

Confirm your return is in scope

Unfortunately we are not able to provide assistance for all situations. The following is a list of some of the situations that are out of scope for our assistance. If you have a question about if your income is within scope, please contact us at: taxassistance@nrvtap.com. If you have a type of income that is out of scope you can still use TaxSlayer to prepare your return, but we will not be able to provide guidance about how to do so.

  • Income over $73,000 Note: this is a software limit, and you won’t be able to prepare a return if your income is over this amount.

  • Resident aliens (Free software or tax clinics are available for those who qualify)

  • Other state income tax returns (we support Minnesota and California returns, the software supports the other states, but we can’t help you do them)

  • Treaty benefits for income types other than wages, scholarships, dividends, and capital gains

  • Self-employment Income (1099-NEC or 1099-MISC)

  • Income earned outside of the US

  • Amended returns

  • Prior Year (2020 or earlier) Returns

  • Cryptocurrency

The University of Minnesota International Student & Scholar Services group has put together some additional information that you might find helpful here: UofM ISSS Taxes